


Boops and Giggles

by iloveitblue



Series: Prompts [50]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, deaged!clint
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-25
Updated: 2016-02-09
Packaged: 2018-02-06 04:11:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1843921
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iloveitblue/pseuds/iloveitblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The one where Clint is turned into a child.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"I’m sorry, what?"

Bruce then passes Phil a bundle of baby, careful not to jostle the sleeping child so much. “A Baby, Phil. Well, technically a toddler.”

"Yeah, I- I got that part. What I meant was- No. Actually, that is what I mean. What?"

"Dr. Doom decided to try out his latest project on Clint during the last battle. I’m not quite sure what de-ageing is supposed to do, but after Clint got hit by the ray, Dr. Doom escaped. Tony is in his lab, trying to figure out how the ray works and possibly how to make it reverse its effects. I’m going down to mine, to check Clint’s biology, see if anything weird pops up. Natasha and Steve are tracing down Doom and Thor is trying to look for a cure within the nine realms. We’ll tell you as soon as something pops up. Pepper got some supplies if you ever need them. They’re in the kitchen." Bruce explains even as he escapes.

Phil stood in the living room with an armful of baby that seems to have woken all on his own. Phil tried rocking the baby - Clint - gently to try to make it go back to sleep, after all, a baby asleep is a peaceful baby, but Clint just continued to look up at him. 

Phil walked over to the couch and sat. He held Clint up so that he was standing on Phil’s legs. “Why aren’t you crying? Aren’t babies supposed to be always cranky and crying?” He asked the child.

Clint just giggled at him and proceeded to eat his own fist. “Wow, that’s adorable.” Phil says out loud. “I guess you’re hungry, huh? Does your fist taste good? Come on, let’s get some food into you, before you actually do start crying.” Phil moved to the kitchen, with Clint against his chest. There were no high chairs, so Phil just continued to carry Clint in his arms. 

As Phil made milk, Clint continued making gurgling sounds and eating his fist. Phil would pull Clint’s fist out of his mouth, but moments later, Clint is sucking on the fist again. Phil sighed in defeat, until he finally made the formula. He took out Clint’s fist from his mouth again, but this time, before Clint could place it back in, Phil placed the bottle near the child’s lips. 

Clint seemed to understand, and proceeded to suck on the formula. Phil smiled down at him. “There. Isn’t that better?” He asks. “Now, Come on. let’s get your fists cleaned up.” He moves back to the bag of supplies, and takes out a package of baby wipes. He places Clint on the floor, crouches down with the child and proceeds to wipe the chubby little fingers clean.

When all that is done, he picks Clint up and moves back to the living room. “You wanna watch a movie?” He asks Clint again. When the child doesn’t respond, he takes it as a yes and asks JARVIS to play Lilo and Stitch for them. 

After finishing the bottle, Phil picks him up and burps him, then places Clint back down beside him on the sofa, encircling the child in his arms to make sure that he didn’t jostle too much.

Through out the movie, Clint kept on wiggling, empty bottle still in his mouth, and looking back and forth between Phil and the TV. “What? You don’t wanna watch Lilo and Stitch?” Clint just stares at him. Clint then lets go of the bottle, dropping it on the floor, and raises up his pudgy arms. Phil picks him up and stands him on his legs again. Clint giggles and he thrashes his left arm until it hit Phil square on the nose, which made the child giggle even more. “Hawkeye, no. We are watching Lilo and Stitch not playing boops.” Clint pouts, hits Phil’s nose again, then giggles. “Clint I’m going to report you for insubordination.” Clint boops him again anyway. Phil mock gasps.then places Clint sitting on his lap with an arm around him. “That’s how you wanna play it?” Phil touches Clint’s nose and the child began shrieking giggles. Clint reaches out, but obviously could not reach Phil’s nose, so Phil bends down until Clint could boop him back. “You’re deliberately using that face to make me get closer to you so you can boop me. That’s practically cheating, Agent Barton.” Clint smiles up at him then eats his fists again. 

"No. I told you, No eating your fists. you need those for work." Then Phil scrunches up his nose at a distinctive smell. "Did you- Please tell me you didn’t." Phil pulls the child up and turns him around. He smells the diaper, and yep, Agent Barton shat himself, giggling. Wow. Never thought you could hear those words in a single sentence. "Aww, Clint. No." Phil frowned at the child and Clint looked up at him with wide eyes and smiles and it was just not fair.

Phil rolled his eyes and proceeded to go to the kitchen to pick up the supplies then to his suite’s bathroom. After a practically traumatizing diaper change, Phil placed Clint in the center of the bed, just long enough so that he could remove his tie and jacket. He placed pillows by Clint’s side, so that he didn’t roll off later and sat beside him. “Since you don’t want to watch TV, I already fed you and you already made me change your diaper, the only thing left for us to do is sleep. What do you say?” Clint yawned in response. “Perfect.” 

Phil reached into the supplies and pulled out the extra formula he made earlier and held it out to Clint. Clint obediently took the formula and drank from it. Phil hummed him the song his mom used to sing to him while simultaneously rubbing his back. Clint’s eyes slowly but surely closed, making the archer sleep.

And watching the child sleep, Phil knew that Clint was definitely the most adorable person he’s ever met whether as a child or an adult. But nobody needed to know that. 

Phil kissed Clint’s forehead lightly before he himself drifted into a light sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Clint ages up to six.

Tony came bursting in through the door of the room and announced that he’s done it; Steve and Bruce right behind him. Phil jolted awake and Clint started bawling.

Tony cringed when Phil glared at him. Phil quickly took Clint in his arms and started rubbing the child’s back, shushing him with a hum. Clint’s sobs slowed almost immediately and he began eating his fist again. 

"What is it now, Stark?" Phil asked a little too irritated by the fact that he was so rudely awakened. "And Welcome back, Captain Rogers." Steve nodded at him.

"I’ve done it, Agent!" Stark says.

"Done what exactly?" Phil refused to massage the bridge of his nose.

"I’ve figured  _this_  out.” He says taking out the same gun Dr. Doom had used and pointed it at both Phil and Clint. Phil’s eyes grew wide, and Steve acted quickly and pulled the barrel to face the ceiling instead. Bruce sighed out loud. “Sorry. Anyway, I’ve done it! I’ve reversed the mechanics of the gun. It was easy, really all I had to do was to check for the calib-“

"Spare me the engineering. Does it work?" 

"Yes." Phil places Clint in the bed again, sitting up. and still eating his fist. "You sure?"

"Positive." Stark points the gun at Clint again and the room was filled with the soft whirring of the gun. "Well, in theory." Before Phil could stop him, Tony had fired the gun right at Clint and there was a second of bright light. Phil’s vision cleared only to see a young blonde boy sitting in place of Baby Clint. The child looked at the room confused and then at Phil. his bottom lip started wobbling but the child forcibly trying to stop it.

"TONY!" Steve yelled.

"WHAT?!" Tony yelled back.

"What did you do?"

"I don’t know! It was supposed to age him back. Maybe if I-"

"Tony, No! You said it yourself that you didn’t know what-"

"re-calibrate the settings. I know what I’m doing, Steve. Jeez. Genius-"

"you did! You can’t just fire guns at people like that! What if it disintegrated him? What-"

"remember? It wouldn’t have disintegrated him, the worst it could have done is reverse his age further or age him a little too old-"

Both men yelped and proceeded to string “ows” as Bruce pulled them both out of the room by their ears.

Phil silently thanked the scientist and looked at Clint again, who was now curled up, his head on his knees and his hands covering his ears and he was shaking. 

Phil reached out and touched the child’s shoulder as softly as he could “Clint?” Clint flinched and backed away as fast as he could. Phil raised both hands as a sign of surrender. “It’s okay, I promise. I won’t hurt you.” Now that Phil got a good look at him, Clint had bruises all over his body.

That, plus the position he immediately curled up into when Stark and Rogers yelled at each other, were both telling Phil something he didn’t like.

He crouched down so that he was at least face level with Clint without getting on the bed. “My name is Phil, You’re Clint Barton right?” He asked and the child nodded a hesitant yes. “See, I know that because we’re friends.”

"We are?" There was a tremble in his voice, and Phil felt a little bit more annoyed.

"The best." He’ll feel guilty about lying to the archer later.

"But I don’t know you, ‘An my momma says I shouldn’t trust people I don’ know." 

"Yes, but-" Phil thought of a way to break it to child that he was actually past forty and not- "How old are you again?"

"Six." Clint says.

"Right. Well,  _my_  Clint is 46 years old. But you see, you two switched. And now he’s with your brother and you’re with me.”

"Like a trade?"

"Like a trade."

"But why would my brother agree to trade me with your Clint?" His lips began wobbling again. And he tried to force it down again.

"He didn’t. It’s just that, bad people are after my best friend and they took him and replaced him here with you."

Clint just nodded, as if what Phil was anywhere near believable to a child’s ear.

"Do you want to go home, Clint?"

Clint looked up at him then back at the sheets then back at Phil again. before he mumbled a soft “No.”

That’s three now. “That’s okay.” Clint’s eyes lit up. “Are you hungry?” Clint shook his head. “That’s okay, too. Do you wanna watch cartoons?” Clint practically jumped up.

"Yes!" Then he shriveled down. "But I can’t." He glares at his knees. "Barney says I’m too stupid to watch TV." 

Phil fought the anger boiling in his gut because now was not the time for planning revenge. “I think what he meant was watching too much would  _make_ you stupid.”

"He does?"

"Of course."  _Not really, but he doesn’t realize your genius._

Clint nodded and crawled off of the bed. Clint hesitated, before he took Phil’s hand. That’s four. 

—-

Clint was still watching cartoons with Phil and eating ice cream when Natasha walked into the living room. Phil stood up greeted her and she raised an eyebrow at the child. 

Clint stood up along with Phil and hid behind his leg. Phil rested a protective hand on the boy’s head and Natasha raised another eyebrow at that. “Doom is back in his country. I can’t touch him.” She said simply and moved on, probably to the labs.

Steve tried to ask Phil if he needed any help with looking after Clint. Phil politely declined the offer saying that he doesn’t trust anyone with Clint right now. no offense. 

Steve just looked surprised but nodded in agreement before he walked away.He promised this Clint he’d protect him, no matter what happened. That he wouldn’t get hurt. 

"Hey, Clint. You wanna go to the park and play there? we could play catch or just walk around, what do you say?" Phil asks Clint. The child grins up at him and nods. 

Phil is determined to keep his promise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Here on tumblr](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/post/91662528256/always-remember-the-best-way-to-make-your)


	3. Chapter 3

Clint is missing. 

Phil took his eyes off of the child for a literal second and when he turned back, he was gone. 

“Shit.” Phil muttered, shoving the lollipop he just bought in his pocket to try and look around the park for Clint. He dialed on his phone for Tony, hoping the genius would pick up after the first ring.

It was the third but Phil was going to take it - Tony had the tendency to let his calls go to voice mail after all. “Stark. I need you to track Barton.” 

“What? What happened? What’s going on?” Tony asked, sounding panicked. In the background, Phil could hear the immediate silence wherever Tony was, then there were furious tapping sounds. “It says here, he’s in the tower.” Tony sighed. “What’s going on, agent?”

Phil didn’t answer his question, instead he asked Tony a question of his own, “What are you tracking? Is it his phone? Track something else. Barton didn’t bring his phone with him.” It looked like it was going to rain soon. Phil ran faster, looking around for the little boy. 

“Well what the hell do you want me to track? His brain waves?” Tony snapped.

“You and I both know that you’re paranoid enough to put tracking devices on everyone you know, Stark. So find him  _now_ or so help me” Phil yelled into his phone. He was going to apologize later. Right now, he needed to find a lost six-year-old boy and bring him back to the tower.

“Uh, Agent.” Tony sounded panicked. “You know that bracelet we put on him?” Phil remembered. The silver bracelet that six-year-old Clint thought was a present for him - he smiled so hard Phil thought for a moment that the child’s face might get stuck that way forever, although that wouldn’t necessarily be a problem - but was actually a device that let Bruce and Tony examine his biological status remotely. It took blood samples, heart rate, even hair count. 

“Yes, what about it?” Phil asked impatiently. 

“It looks like your boy had a growth spurt. Says here his body chemistry is approximately twelve years old now.” Tony was silent for a second, then Phil heard something beeping in the background. “Shit. Agent, the bracelet lost connection. Barton must have destroyed it. I didn’t get beyond north west part of Central Park.” 

“Send the Captain and the others to my location.” Phil ordered and hung up. 

—

They split up to look for a twelve year old version of their friend lost somewhere in Central Park.

But Phil knew better. Clint, at twelve, was the kind of kid that ran away from home to join a circus. He was the kind of kid that destroyed the bracelet to avoid getting caught. He was the kind of kid that learned to survive on his own. 

In short, he was scared. 

 Luckily, Phil knew exactly what Clint tended to do when he got scared. It was a hunch at most, but it was the only thing Phil had. He ran for the tallest tree in Central Park even in the pouring rain, hoping to find Clint hiding there.

“Clint!” Phil yelled over the loud pouring of the rain. “Clint, can you hear me?” There was nothing for a second and Phil started to consider climbing the tree when an acorn hit him on the forehead. 

Phil sighed in relief, smiling a little now that he knew Clint was here. “The Amazing Hawkeye once again astounds us with his accuracy.” Phil turned around to face the now empty park, gesturing to nobody in a dramatic fashion, “Ladies and Gentlemen! I am proud to introduce to you the World’s Greatest Marksman! The Amazing Hawkeye!”

“How do you know that name?” Phil whirled around to find Clint sitting in one of the lowest branches on the tree - it was still pretty high up, but Clint looked content sitting there. “Trickshot gave me that name two days ago. He hasn’t even told anyone that he’s putting me in the ring yet. Who told you?”

“You did.” Phil answered the boy. 

“Bullshit. Why would I tell you a secret that big? I don’t even know who you are.” Clint countered, throwing another acorn at Phil. 

Phil easily caught it and smiled at the shocked look Clint had on. “Sure you do. I’m your best friend. You tell me everything.” 

“You’re not my best friend. I think I would know my own best friend. Besides, you’re too old to be best friends with a kid. Don’t you have a job or something?”

“I do, but I had to find you first.” 

“Why?”

“Because, I bought you this.” Phil took out the lollipop that was in his pocket, it was ridiculously big for a six year old, but it was probably an okay size for a twelve year old. “You said you wanted this, so I bought it for you.” 

Clint climbed the tree down faster than Phil thought he would and grabbed the lollipop from Phil. He unwrapped it and started to bite it. That used to annoy Phil a lot back when they first started working together - “You’re supposed to suck on a lollipop, Barton.” “Let me live my life, Coulson” - but now, he just found the action reassuring. Clint was Clint, after all. 

“Wait, you didn’t do anything suspicious to this lollipop, did you?” Clint narrowed his eyes at Coulson suspiciously.

“No, I didn’t. And next time, you might want to ask that before you bite the candy.” 

“Worth it.” Clint shrugged. “So, you’re really my best friend?”

“Yes, well, not yet. You’ll meet me again in a few years and we’ll be best friends then. You even call me my name sometimes.”

“What do I call you usually?” 

“Coulson.” 

“Is that your last name or something?”

“Yes.” 

“What’s your first name?”

“Phil.”

“Phil… I like it. I’ll call you Phil. Calling you Coulson seems stupid if we are best friends. Is that okay?”

“It’s perfectly fine. May I call you Clint?”

“’Course.” Clint scuffed his shoe and sighed. “Hey, Phil. Since you’re my best friend and all, do you think maybe I could stay with you until the rain lets up? I think I’m lost and this place looks like New York, but at the same time, not. I have to get back to get back to the circus before they notice I’m gone or Trickshot’ll scold me again.”

Phil sighed in relief again, thankful that he didn’t have to think of an elaborate lie to get the child back to the tower. “Sure, Clint. That’s what best friends are for. C’mon. I’ll take you home.” 

In a few hours time, Clint will be back to his original age, and this’ll be another one of those crazy missions. Right now, it was twelve year old Clint and Phil running in the rain, trying to get home. One thing’s for sure though, Phil won’t forget this Clint - the Clint that seemed to not have a care in the world as he laughed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Here on tumblr](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/post/138995561586/more-clint-is-missing-phil-took-his-eyes-off)

**Author's Note:**

> [Here on Tumblr](http://promptmephlint.tumblr.com/post/89781544546/its-almost-time-for-midterms-la-dee-da-yes)


End file.
